Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a personality disorder characterized by an intense fear of abandonment, risky behaviors, reassurance-seeking, and a traumatic background. Those with the condition often live with mood swings and deep emotional states that can feel overwhelming and intense.

If you’re someone who has been diagnosed with BPD, did you know that art therapy and crafts are a great way to heal symptoms of the disorder? Compassionate art and art therapy are commonly used in the treatment of personality disorders to help with emotional regulation and confidence in self and self-expression.

Here are some DIY crafts for people with BPD to try.

Dream Board

A dream board is a type of collage made to express our desires for the future. After creating your dream board, hang it up in your office or an area you frequent to remind yourself daily of your goals and what is important to you. Here’s what you’ll need:

• A piece of poster board or a large portion of cardstock paper
• Magazines and photos you don’t mind cutting
• Scissors
• Stickers
• Glue or tape
• Pens/Pencils to decorate

To create your dream board, simply find photos and words from magazines and pictures that you have available to create a collage or board of inspiration. These things should be positive. Try not to add anything that makes you feel bad about yourself now.

Some ideas of pictures and words that may inspire you include:

• Words about a career you’d like to have
• A photo of your dream dog breed
• A photo showing your dream style
• Countries you’d like to visit someday
• Positive items you’d like to own
• Hopeful words like “love, peace, and joy”

Your dream board should make you feel hopeful and excited for your future. If you feel sad or anxious about the project, consider speaking with a therapist or art therapist to guide you on what type of art project works best for you.

Self-Love Project

There are a variety of self-love projects you can try. A self-love art project or DIY craft gives you a sense of understanding about who you are and why you’re a good person. An art project like this can help start the healing process of trauma, which is often the cause of BPD in many patients.

Our idea for a self-love project may be one you haven’t heard of before. Here’s what you’ll need:

• A black-and-white printed photo of yourself on paper (big enough to do art with)
• Stickers
• Colored paper
• Pens (colored pens)
• Glitter (glitter pens work too)
• Magazines (optional)

To create your self-love portrait, you’ll want to start with the photo of yourself as the base. All you need to do is add artistic elements to the image that represents you in some positive way. For example, you can add your favorite color to your shirt with a glitter pen. Some more ways you can add personalization include:

• Using magazine cut-outs that represent who you are, framing them around the background of your photo
• Use colored paper to give your clothing a brighter look
• Add stickers that represent your passions and interests
• Add colorful makeup with glitter or gel pens
• Make the portrait unique

Once you’re done, you’ll have a gorgeous black and white portrait of yourself with a bunch of things that make you unique to remind you of your self-worth each day. You can get it framed and hang it up in your room when you need to remind yourself what makes you unique.

Musical Art

Those with BPD are often very sensitive and attuned to music. Music is a great way to understand your inner feelings through someone else’s words. If you have favorite songs that represent you, you can pay attribute to them by creating a piece of art that combines them all.

If you’re someone who likes the freedom of creativity, you have it here! Draw anything you want that gives you a positive feeling (if drawing something sad is going to make you sad, don’t do it). You can color it or design it in any way you choose.

Now, add symbolism or your favorite lyrics around the piece. You can write the lyrics in the background or add symbols of your favorite band stealthily throughout the work of art, whether it’s a painting or a drawing.

For example, if your favorite band is Queen, you could add a crown to a woman in the painting with a small drawing of Freddy Mercury. Or, you could add a lyric from one of Queen’s songs and have it flying on a banner through the sky in the picture.

Conclusion

Art is an essential form of creativity that can be highly healing to those with BPD. If you struggle with self-image or feelings of inadequacy, these art projects are sure to remind you of joyous times, emotions, and hope. You can also find your own art projects online or join an art club or society in your town. There are many ways to use art to heal.

If you do not already have a therapist, art therapy might be a good resource for you. It has been proven to help those with BPD learn self-love and expression through art, and it adds less pressure than traditional talk therapy.